Bloatfly (Ship)
Found only in close orbit around fire worlds, lizardmen of space use these ships as incubators which warm their eggs in order to produce stronger and more intelligent hatchlings. These black tar-painted, spindle-shaped metal craft represent the pinnacle of scalykind design. The bloatfly is studded with 18 weapon blisters, each of which contains a dual ballista ready to ward off any attack. Two sets of skeletal wings allow for some degree of maneuverability without requiring a large number of crew to operate. While the bloatfly is a relatively new ship, most races have quickly learned not to attack it. Not only is a bloatfly heavily armed, and capable of doing massive damage to an attacker, but the crew will always fight to the death to protect their precious cargo. In addition, even if the ship and the crew are overcome, most raiders would be completely uninterested in the cargo of egg-tubes (made from Glassteel) which is carried. Illithids and neogi are the exceptions to this, since the egg-tubes will hatch a generation of slaves to serve them. Crew A bloatfly can carry less crew than its size would indicate, since air considerations must be made for the egg-tubes (the egg-tubes consume as much air as 12 men). In practice, the crew tends to be about half of what the ship could carry, since so much of the ship is given over to egg tubes, leaving little room for crew quarters. In combat situations, 1 lizardman will typically man each dual ballista, which will already be loaded and ready to fire. While this generally means that the ship's weapons will fire only once per battle, the shear number of dual ballistas carried makes this a viable tactic. In spheres where illithid or neogi slavers are known to operate extensively, a full crew will often be carried despite the abysmal living conditions this requires. This allows all weapons to be fully manned, making the bloatfly truly deadly in combat. A bloatfly will often carry a single human mage of at least 16th level who is capable of casting Glassteel. This mage is hired on for a single voyage at a time, and will serve as the helmsman and will also repair any damaged egg-tubes. The lizardmen pay these mages extremely well, since their own spellcasters are unable to cast Glassteel at this time, and since most humans find the incredibly hot and humid conditions aboard a bloatfly to be nearly unbearable. Ship Uses Broodship: The only confirmed use to which bloatflies have been put is that of a broodship, incubating lizardman eggs. Their coating of black tar retains maximum heat from the sun, and also makes boarding attempts dangerous (the heated tar causes 1-2 points of damage per round of contact with unprotected flesh). The interior of a broodship is almost entirely filled with transparent Glassteel piping, punctuated by small chambers where the lizardmen store their food, weaponry, the needed plants and spores for altering the chemical balance of the water, and larger swim-tunnels linking the rooms with the weapons blisters and the observation bubble. Since a broodship needs to orbit a fire world for a period of 6 months to properly incubate its eggs, the vessel will be crammed with as many plants as possible to freshen the air, or magical means will be used to maintain the air envelope. Other Configurations Colonization Ships: It is rumoured that some bloatflies have been stripped of all weaponry and tubing, and instead filled with plants, livestock, and lizardman colonists. These craft are said to be escorted by heavily armed wasps, and are intent on colonizing new worlds, after which time the bloatfly will be modified back to serve its original purpose to provide the next generation of the colony. It is unknown if there is any truth to these rumours.